Implement for driving staples



Jan. 13, 1948. J. F. cAvANAGH IMPLEMENT FOR DRIVING STAPLES Filed June, 26, 1945 INVENTOR fo/zj? avaffag ATTORNEYS Patented Jan. 13, 1948 IMPLEMENT FOR DRIVING STAPLES John F. Cavanagh, Providence, R. I., assignor to John F. Cavanagh and Agnes L. Cavanagh, as

joint tenants Application June 26, 1945, Serial No. 601,658

4 Claims.

This invention relates to an implement for driving staples or the like.

In the use of implements of the character here referred to it is usual to swing the implement by means of a handle and to strike the work in the same way a hammer would be used with sufficient force to eject the staple from the implement into the work. The very nature of the implement is such that it must be rugged and its parts cannot be of precision character. A certain weight must be present in order to provide the inertia necessary to carry the staple which is ejected from the implement into the work and the location of this weight is essential both from the standpoint of utilization of the momentum or inertia of the weight in the driving of the staple and also is it important in the balance of the implement as it is swung in action. Implements which have been heretofore designed have been made excessively heavy because of the ineiicient location of this weight or have had to be made strong in certain parts because of the location of weight. In some cases it is necessary to drive the staple into the work after partly started into the work by the implement and it is desirable to provide an implement which may be utilized for this purpose.

One of the objects of this invention is to so locate the weight which is provided that it may assist in the driving of the staple into the work and give proper balance t the instrument.

Another object of the invention is to provide a weight which may be utilized as a direct drive for inserting the staple into the work.

Another object of this invention is to so locate the weight which is utilized that a less weight and more compact construction of device may be provided.

Another object of this device is to simplify the operating parts so that the same may be more eiiiciently made and assembled.

Another object of this invention is to provide a mechanism of moving parts which are entirely enclosed in the casing to protect them against the introduction of foreign matter.

Another object of the invention is to provide a casing which will be entirely closed except for the opening through which the staple is ejected.

Another object of this invention is to provide a housing having as a fixed part thereof a mass which provides the driving inertia without auxiliary weighting members.

Another object of this invention is to provide a casing which may be utilized as an auxiliary driving surface.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists of certain novel features of construction, as will be more fully described and particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is an elevation of the implement;

Fig. 2 is a bottom view thereof;

Fig. 3 is a central sectional view;

Fig. 4 is a section on line 4-4 with the striker omitted;

Fig. 5 is a section on line 5-5 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 6 is a fragmental sectional view on an enlarged scale illustrating means for controlling the staples.

In proceeding with this invention I provide an enclosed casing with operating parts entirely within this casing except for an actuating member which causes movement of these parts. Staples are arranged to be loaded in an opening in the front end of the casing and is closed by a cover which holds them in place. Staples are arranged to be controlled in their feed so that the cover may be opened for loading without the staples being ejected. An auxiliary striking surface is provided on the top of the casing so that the implement may be turned over and used as an ordinary hammer for driving a partly driven staple into the work, this all being accomplished without ejecting a staple while striking any such hammer blow.

With reference to the drawings a casing desig nated generally I0 has a head portion designated generally II and a handle portion designated generally I2. The casing is formed in halves I4 and I5 as shown in Fig. 5 which abut along a joint I6 at the top and I1 at the bottom and which halves are held in engagement by nut I8 and bolt I9 so as to form a hollow enclosure 20. Seam I1 at the bottom is offset as at I'I' as shown in Fig. 2. The bottom wall 2I is notched at one end as at 22 through which the staples may be ejected. Y v

A U-shaped channel guide 23 is fixed to the bottom wall 2| and extends substantially throughout the length of the head and handle I I and I2 and provides a guide on which staples 24 in U- form and inverted are slidably positioned. Staples are moved forwardly on this guide by a slide 2 5 under the action of tension spring 26 which is attached to the eye 21 on the slide and looped about a pulley 21' and then doubled upon itself to extend to a hook 28 at the outer end of the handle. This hook may be conveniently mounted upon the stud I8 which serves to secure the handle and casing members together.

A driving member 30 abuts the flanges 3| of the casing at the forward end and is of a width substantially the width of the side walls of the casing so as to be guided thereby. The lower end is guided by the end of a bracket 32 so that this member may be slidably mounted for reciprocation to engage a staple in its path and eject the same from the implement.

A cover 33 is pivoted as at 34 and serves to limit the forward movement of the staples so 3 that the forward one will be in the path of the driving member 30.

This driving member 3D is provided with rack teeth 35 to be engaged by a pinion 36 mounted on the pivot pin 34.

A striker designated generally 38 comprises'avv pair of arms 39 hinged on pivots 40 having..

aligned axes on the casing walls. These arms are jointed at their free ends by a U-shaped member 4I welded as at 42 to the arm 33. A i' rounded surface 43 is provided for this portion 4| which serves to engage the work at substantially the point of the surface adjacent into which the staple is to be driven. The arms 3'9 have a generally triangular formation and between the portions 45 thereof a segmental gear 46 is secured by rivets 4l and 48 extending through slots 49`in the sidewalls of the casing. .'Ihus, this gear segment 46 is viiXed to the striker and becomes a part thereof although this is within the casing while the arms and other portions heretofore described are outside the casing. The gear segment 46 has as its center the axis of the pivotal mounting 4). Teeth 49 engage with Athe teeth of the pinion 4S so that movement upwardly of this gear segment in response to the striker 43 hitting the work rocks the pinion to move driving member 30 downward-ly to eject the staple through the opening 22.

A leaf spring l secured as :at 52 to the upper edge of the casing extends forwardly into engagement with the gear segment 46' and vserves to return this gear segment to` a lower position thereby 'rocking' the pinion until the driving member is in itsuppermost position-as shown in Fig. 3. In order to provide a cushioning abutment a rubber buffer 55 is positioned in the upper wall'of the casing'in the `,path `of -movement of the gear segment and spring 5I so that .they will be limited in their movement in thisrdirection by acushion stop; v

In order to provide momentum or weight for the striking implement `I ha-ve'mounted` a plate 56 ofvannewhat lheavier construction than the casing itself -on the casing by'means `of rivets 51 and I lhave located this weightso that-it will be in the path -of movement of the driving member 30 so that as the hammer is swungthe momentum gained by this heavier mass will be in line with -the lstriking blow ofthe drivingrmember `arid'thereby carry forward the inertiagained by the movement of the striking blow.V YFurther, it has' been found that this plate vlocated atthis point provides -abetter balance for the instrument in directing-the force as required.v This plate also serves'as'ra means .forVV driving 4the staple whichv has Vpartly Yentered. the workl vby merely turning over the implement and using it as an 'ordinary hammer. Y f 5 I-n order to prevent the Astaples 24fffrom -bein'g ejected when the cover l33 is opened `I Aprovide `a pawl 60 pivotedon bracket 32 vby pin 6I Yextending through slot 62 and urged -by spring 63 into engagement with-the staples; This, pawl isrer leased each-stroke of the drivingmember by the lower tooth 35 engaging the portion .64' of the pawl -to rock it sufliciently to release the4 dog A65, whereupon spring G31 draws 'pawl vt0 back 4by reason -of the slot at least'the distance corresponding to the width of one staple. Spring 63 then functions to rook pawl liiback into vengagemjentwith-staples 24. When the driver 3U is raised, the spring 26 feeds thestaplestrip. for

ward again overpowering the spring 63 and also sliding the pawl forward with the staple strip. Whenever cover 33 is swung open for replenishing the staple. supply or for other purposes, only the portion of the attached staples represented by the length of the slot 62 will protrude from the end of channel guide 23. It will be seen that as attached staples are forced into the end of the hammer against the pressure of spring 26, pawl 6U functions to prevent ejection of said staples during the replenishing operation.

I claim:

1. An implement for driving staples or the like comprising a casing, a driving member slidably mounted in said casing 'adjacent one end thereof and provided'with Vrack teeth in the plane of movement of the driving end, a striker pivoted by said casing at a point remote from said casing end and gear teeth on an arc with said pivot as a center which are responsive to movement of said striker, said striker extending from said pivot to a location in proximity to the path of movement of said driving member, a pinion having teeth to mesh with said gear teeth and with said rack teeth of said driving member and pivoted in said casing adjacent said member between said teeth whereby movement of said striker transfers movement in the opposite direction to said driving member.

2. An implement as set forth in claim 1 wherein said driving member, pinion and gear teeth Vwhich move in response to movement of said striker are housed within said casing.

3. An implement as set forth in claim 1 Wherein 4said striker comprises a U-shape part on the outer surface -of said casing and said gear teeth Aare within said casing and attached to said -U-shape part.

4. In a device of the character described, a. housing, a staple driver mounted therein, an elongated chamber-within said housing for storing a strip of attached staples, a movable closure for `the end of said chamber, spring means for -urging said staples against said closure and un- -der said driver, and a, rockable check pawl to engage said staples, means to mount said pawl forrocking movement and for movement bodily towardv and from said driver and generally parallel to said staple strip, a spring weaker than the l-rst said spring to urge said pawl away from said- Ydriver and rockably about said mounting into engagement with said strip, means responsive to the movement of said driver to engage said pawl and rock it out of engagement with saidstrip se that said -second spring may move said pawl in a direction away from said driver to obtain another grip on said staples.

- JOHN F. CAVANAGH.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES ,PATENTS .600,577 France f. Feb. l0, 1926 

